# The most iconic New Zealand foods

Kiwi classics from Māori hāngī to hokey pokey ice cream, according to HolidayTribe, New Zealand Shores and New Zealand food guides.

- 13 votes · 17 items
- Sep 5, 2026 · Nikau Brown
- https://even.best/en/l/874/the-most-iconic-new-zealand-foods

## Top 12

1. **Green-lipped mussels** (5 · ▲5 ▼0) — Native mussels steamed or in chowder.
2. **Pavlova** (2 · ▲2 ▼0) — Meringue with cream and kiwifruit, claimed by both New Zealand and Australia.
3. **Meat pie** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Mince and cheese or steak pies, Kiwis' favourite bakery snack.
4. **Whitebait fritters** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Tiny whitebait bound in egg and fried, the ultimate NZ street food.
5. **Roast lamb** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Sunday roast of New Zealand lamb with mint sauce.
6. **Fish and chips** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Gurnard or snapper with chips on the beach.
7. **Kina** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Sea urchin roe, a Māori delicacy.
8. **Cheese rolls (Southland sushi)** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Toasted rolled bread with a cheese filling, a Southland and Otago speciality.
9. **Hāngī** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Māori feast of meat and vegetables cooked on hot stones in an earth oven.
10. **Hokey pokey ice cream** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Vanilla ice cream with lumps of honeycomb toffee.
11. **Kūmara** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Māori sweet potato, roasted or as chips.
12. **Afghan biscuits** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Chocolate cornflake biscuits with chocolate icing and a walnut.
13. **Lamingtons** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Sponge squares in chocolate and coconut, also loved across the Tasman.
14. **Bluff oysters** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Wild oysters from Foveaux Strait with their own festival.
15. **Kiwi burger** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Burger with beetroot and fried egg.
16. **Pineapple Lumps** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Chewy pineapple-flavoured sweets coated in chocolate, a Kiwi favourite since the 1950s.
17. **L&P (Lemon & Paeroa)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Lemon soft drink originally made with mineral water from Paeroa, «world famous in New Zealand».

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.